Lumine must have been relieved that we survived that disaster, because she suddenly jumped on me and wrapped her arms around me. I caught her by the waist so she wouldn't fall.
…Her waist was soft and warm.
…But.
This doesn't feel right.
I gently set her back down. Lumine's cheeks were slightly flushed—she was probably only now realizing what she had done.
Paimon, who had been hiding in a corner, floated over to us.
"Kane, Lumine, are you two okay?!"
I stretched my arms; they were aching from constantly throwing element bombs.
"I'm fine. Are you hurt, Lumine?"
"I'm fine too…"
Even though we had survived, the destruction around us was enough to crush our morale. I slowly walked toward the Knights. There were bodies everywhere. The falling rain felt like it was weighing down everyone's emotions even further.
The Knights who noticed me already knew that I was the one throwing the spheres. This victory—if it could even be called that—was likely because of me.
Then Jean noticed me among them and approached.
"Kane? Were you the one who threw those spheres?"
"Yes?"
Jean grabbed my shoulders; her eyes were slightly wet. The weight of the battle seemed to have hit her hard.
On the other hand, I felt almost nothing.
All I could think about was how much I already missed that rush of adrenaline.
"...Thank you. Truly... I don't know what we would have done without you."
I gently lowered her hands from my shoulders. For some reason, I didn't like being held like that.
"I only did what had to be done. You should be supporting your Knights. Wipe your eyes."
Jean understood what I meant, wiped her eyes, and turned back to her soldiers.
I kept staring at the corpses.
Just like the dragon earlier, these Hilichurl corpses had red crowns hovering above them. But now those crowns were slowly fading.
…I had an idea.
I turned around and motioned for Lumine to come closer. She clearly hesitated near the pile of bodies.
"What is it, Kane?"
I pointed at the corpses—specifically, the Hilichurls.
"Do you think you could redirect the energy in those bodies to me?"
Lumine gave me a strange look.
"Are you sure? Why would you want the energy of dead creatures?"
"They don't need it anymore. Just do what I'm asking."
Lumine sighed. She seemed to realize I wasn't someone she could argue with right now.
She extended her hand toward the corpses, and soon an intense concentration of energy began forming in her palm.
Her abilities were honestly terrifying.
Most of the surrounding energy was corrupted, so it took on a crimson hue. Residual energy from the dragon's breath also gathered, shifting into a sickly green-red mixture.
But it didn't stop there.
The energy of the fallen Knights began to gather as well.
Thankfully, the people around us were busy searching for the bodies of their loved ones.
Lumine stared at the mass of energy in disgust. Then she extended her other hand toward it and began purifying it.
What remained was a deep blue energy—far purer, far more innocent. Traces of green still lingered within it.
"Absorbing this here wouldn't be smart, Kane. We need to go somewhere people can't see."
If Lumine said that, she had a reason.
"Then let's go home."
She nodded, and we made our way back. Navigating through the piles of corpses wasn't easy. Some bodies were frozen solid and blocked the path, so I had to kick a few aside, shattering them.
After a while, we finally reached home.
Neither Lumine nor Paimon felt like talking.
Inside the house, I sat down on the floor and took off my shirt. Lumine moved behind me. She took a deep breath—and then suddenly pushed the energy into my back.
The moment it entered my body, a burning sensation spread everywhere.
It hurt.
But my pain tolerance had reached an absurd level mentally.
It felt like new pathways, new pores were opening inside my body. My heart started racing; my blood felt like it was boiling. My muscles tensed up uncontrollably.
After a while, the sensation began to subside.
I took a deep breath.
"Is it done?"
Lumine stepped in front of me and examined my body. She looked genuinely shocked.
"How did you even manage this, Kane? We only started this morning. Absorbing that much energy this efficient is extremely strange."
What she meant was clear—we had only begun this cultivation, this energy absorption, earlier today.
…Maybe I was more gifted than I thought.
"I… honestly don't know. Maybe I'm just naturally good at it?"
I stood up and stretched. My muscles felt rock solid.
…And I felt heavier.
Lumine looked up at me.
"Come on. You need to test this outside."
Paimon flew around me.
"Your hair's gotten longer, Kane."
Lumine glanced at my hair. "Yeah… I'm noticing it now too."
"I guess I'll need to start tying it back…"
Lumine grinned.
"If you want, I can tie it for you."
"…Oh. Sure."
I didn't understand why she was smiling like that, but it sounded convenient. Long hair would just get in my way.
I stretched again and prepared to test myself against a tree. I was fully expecting my hand to hurt.
I pulled my right shoulder back, adjusted my hips, and punched the tree with all my strength.
Instead of pain, a deep, heavy sound echoed out—and my fist sank nearly twenty centimeters into the trunk.
…
…
…
In my previous world, no human ever could do that.
I slowly pulled my fist out of the tree. I wasn't even tired.
And my hand didn't hurt.
It felt incredible.
"It's like you've gotten five or six times stronger, Kane."
I was growing stronger far too quickly.
I didn't think that would bring good luck.
Paimon stared at the hole in the tree.
"Woah… you're really strong now, Kane."
I was going to have to get used to compliments from girls.
By the time we went back inside, the rain had stopped.
I turned to Lumine.
"Are you hungry?"
The moment food was mentioned, both Lumine's and Paimon's eyes practically lit up.
"Very."
"I figured. We should eat well after a fight like that."
I took out some meat from the fridge and set it on the board. The firewood underneath was soaked from the rain, so I threw a fire sphere at it, instantly evaporating the water. A second sphere ignited it.
While grilling the meat, I called out to Lumine.
"Lumine, could you make a salad while I cook? I picked vegetables from the garden the other day. They should be on the table."
"Okay."
We were eating way too much meat. At this rate, we'd get gout—we needed vegetables.
Strangely enough, it felt like I was playing house with Lumine. In my old world, being alone in a room with a girl would have had very different effects on me.
Lumine prepared the salad and set it on the table. I plated the meat, and we started eating.
What had happened an hour ago and what was happening now felt like two completely different realities.
Still… the thrill I felt against the dragon was indescribable.
It felt like something empty inside me was being filled—
though only one person could ever completely fill it.
"What are you thinking about, Kane?" Lumine asked.
"I think I enjoyed that fight… Not people dying—don't misunderstand. I just liked how it felt."
"Maybe you're a battle junkie, Kane?"
That might be true. I never had the chance to discover that in my old world. Even clearing Hilichurl camps alone never gave me that same feeling. I guess I was never truly threatened.
"Let's explore the domains tomorrow, Lumine. Oh—and would you like to go to the bar tonight?"
Lumine thought for a moment; alcohol didn't seem to be her strong suit.
"Sure. I think it could be nice."
After finishing our meal—
"The salad was really good, Lumine."
She smiled.
"I'm glad you liked it. Though the meat turned out even better."
"We eat the same meat every day. Don't sell yourself short."
She giggled. Then Paimon chimed in.
"Paimon still loves Kane's cooking the most!"
"Hahaha, thank you."
I patted Paimon's head and stood up.
"There are some things I need to buy in the city. Want to come, Lumine?"
She thought for a moment.
"No, I need to wash up. You can go."
"Alright."
I changed my shirt and left the house. Lumine didn't complain anymore about me changing in front of her. She'd gotten used to it.
And I didn't forget to let her tie my hair—she seemed to enjoy playing with it.
This time, I headed into the city wearing a white shirt and black pants.
The piles of corpses near the gate had already been cleared. Efficient. The blood was probably cleaned by Hydro Vision users.
The Knights who saw me looked at me with respect. I guess I needed to get used to that too.
…it felt good.
The air was cool after the rain. People were gloomy, but life moved on.
I visited Wagner again.
"Hey."
He turned around.
"Kane! You nearly wiped out my entire stock of elemental orbs! But I guess the city's still standing because of it…"
Wagner once again reminded me why being friends with merchants was impossible.
"They weren't that expensive anyway. No one else buys them."
"True. So, what do you need?"
"Can you make me a pair of gloves? They need to match the armor you made. Reinforce the knuckles with metal—strong enough for punching, but not too heavy."
"Weren't you fighting with an axe and shield? Why gloves?"
"Just make them."
"Aight. They'll be ready in a few hours."
I extended my fist so he could measure me, then left.
Alright… now I needed clothes—especially for Lumine. Seeing her wear the same outfit all the time was starting to get to me.
I went to the clothing store. Since I knew Lumine's size, I bought underwear, skirts, jeans, crop tops, T-shirts—
Seriously, how do women have so many clothing options?
The total came to 30,000 Mora. I still had plenty left from hunting, but these things took up a lot of space.
A woman who looked like a shop assistant approached me.
"Sir, don't you have a ring to carry these?"
"A ring?"
"A dimensional ring, sir. You don't know about them?"
Dimensional ring?
At this point, I didn't care. Too many things were already different from the Genshin I knew.
"I don't have one. How can I get it?"
"Our shop sells them. Would you like to take a look?"
"Please."
She guided me to the display. Rings ranged from one, five, to ten square meters of storage. The ten-square-meter ones cost a million Mora—absurd.
The one-square-meter ring cost 20,000 Mora. I guess they made it obviously cheaper so everyone could get atleast one ring.
I chose a plain black ring and stored the clothes inside. It worked just by thinking.
As I left the shop, something bumped into my chest.
I looked down—Amber.
"…Amber?"
She rubbed her forehead, then looked up in surprise.
"Kane?!"
I extended my hand to help her up.
"Why are you so shocked?"
"How could I not be? I thought something happened to you. You disappeared for two weeks. After you left like that… I blamed Eula."
Oh. That explains things.
"…I see. I'm sorry for leaving like that. I just had something I needed to do. Please apologize to Eula for me, okay?"
Amber sighed.
"…Alright. Still, I'm glad you're safe."
"No need to worry about me. I'm better than before."
She nodded, then suddenly asked—
"By the way, why were you coming out of the women's clothing section?"
"Oh, I was buying clothes for a friend."
She looked straight into my eyes.
"A girlfriend?"
Huh? No way.
Besides… my heart was already set elsewhere.
"No, just a friend. Really."
"If you say so…"
She didn't look convinced.
"Anyway, Kane are you free? We haven't talked in a long time."
"Yeah, I am."
Next thing I knew, I was helping Amber pick clothes.
"We should get something for Eula too."
F-for Eula? ...stupid body, stop reacting to her image on my mind... its not the time for it.
"…Okay."
But the clothes Amber picked for Eula are a bit stupid to be honest. I know her better than anyone.
"Let me pick clothes for Eula, Amber."
"...Alright?"
She gave me a puzzled look but I started to choosing clothes for Eula.
I picked jeans, a white T-shirt, and a leather jacket. I knew she'd like it.
"You seem to know Eula's proportions pretty well, Kane."
"…Just a guess."
1.70 m. 60 kg. 86–60–88. I know her every part.
We went to eat after that. I just ordered black coffee; she got a sandwich.
"…So what happened these past two weeks?"
"I survived. Built a house in the forest. Cleared Hilichurl camps. And today, I helped the Knights stop an attack."
She stared at me, stunned.
"You're the one they were talking about?! That makes sense—they mentioned a broad-shouldered guy with brown hair and a blonde girl."
"According to rumors, yeah."
"So that friend of yours is her?"
"I'll introduce you sometime. Oh—about the gliding license. Can you teach me sometime? My friend needs it too."
Amber took a bite before answering.
"Sure. I'm free in two days."
"Works for me."
Okay now I almost handled the gliding part too. Now its the time for important questions.
"…How's Eula?"
"She's working as usual. Things between us are awkward, but a gift should help."
"…Does she hate me?"
"…No. I think she's just confused."
I exhaled in relief.
"That's—good."
She raised an eyebrow.
"Why do you ask?"
"…Just curious."
She clearly didn't buy it.
I looked out the window. The sun was setting.
I hated sunsets.
"Well… it's getting late. I have a few things to do before heading home. See you, Amber."
"Yeah… see you."
I checked out the alchemy stand next, buying fire and electro resistance potions—and a physical enhancement potion. It didnt have any side effects. Weird.
Then I went home.